The present invention generally relates to a blockchain-based management of the state of data, specifically the use of a state meta data and networks to securely store and convey state details for applications and systems for use thereof in execution of blockchain-based state of data management before, during and after data changes or is transmitted in applications and systems.
In many software applications and systems, data can be created, read, updated, divided, merged, deleted and transferred quickly and repeatedly over the lifespan of a session. A session describes a duration of time at which data is represented. When changes to data take place, the state of the data changes. The state represents the point at which data exist before, during or after data has changed. Therefore, a change in data subsequently changes the state of the data at a given session. Applications produce, transform, remove and transmit data internally and/or to other applications and systems (e.g., a mobile application may generate and send usage statistics to a remote analytics service). When an application produces data over time, the state of the data provides a way for systems to measure changes to data. While there are systems that manage the state of data, these systems generally maintain the state of data independently, which may lead to a possible manipulation of the state of data or manipulation of the system that manages the state of data. Therefore, a need exists for the state of data to be managed by a decentralized system that may contain one or more managers of the state of data.
When data is created, there exists a session at which the data exist in memory. The data may change several times during a data creation session at which every change in the data constitutes a state change. A change in data while data is created is said to be referred to as a data creation lifecycle. During a data creation lifecycle, data may undertake several revisions at which the final revision sets the data to a final state. Data created by individuals are said to reach a final state that may be verifiable. Contrarily, data created by applications and systems may not be verifiable since some applications and systems can be corrupted, infiltrated, transformed, mutated and otherwise compromised. Therefore, a need exists to authenticate data during creation time, when data reaches a final state in applications and systems.
Very often, systems incorporate some level of data encryption (e.g. using a md5 hash or a sha256 hash function to produce hash values) to encrypt data prior to transmission which may include using public and private keys. In some instances, the encrypted data may be altered during transmission or the public or private key could be compromised by malware. Thus, there exists a need to ensure that data is authenticated during a data transfer lifecycle, irrespective of the method of encryption before or during the time data is transferred by using a blockchain network where each of the state metadata or hash values can be stored and used to verify changes to data over time.
A blockchain is a way to authenticate records which are linked and secured using cryptography. Blockchains are inherently resistant to modifications of the data when distributed across multiple blockchain computing systems in a network (“blockchain network”). A blockchain-based state of data management in applications and systems provides a way to authenticate the state of data.
The present invention is distinguished from the following patents:
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 7,748,031—Mass Storage Device with Automated Credentials. The present invention, in some embodiments, addresses the blockchain-based state of data management and is not related to a mass storage device that uses two factor authentications.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 9,635,000—Blockchain Identity Management System Based on Public Identities Ledger. The present invention use of a public identity ledger is replaced with a ledger that manages state metadata and hash values. The present invention is not designed for validating identities of members in a community, but instead is validating the authenticity of data over time and also to invalidate data that may be manipulated by an unwanted intruder.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 9,667,427—Systems and Methods for Managing Digital Identities. The present invention is not designed to manage digital identities of users, but instead to validate or invalidate data over time. The present invention is also agnostic to the type of data that may come from a source device and is primarily focused on authenticating the state of data (the state of data could contain a hash value representing the data, timestamp, source id etc. and/or metadata).
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 9,722,790—Identity Management Service Using a Blockchain Providing Certifying Transactions Between Devices. The present invention uses the concepts of a distributed public database, but is agnostic to the type of data that may come from a source device, and is primarily focused on validating or invalidating data over time. In the present invention, authenticating the state of data while it is created, updated and transferred ensures that the data received by a source device is the correct (unaltered) data.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 9,774,578—Distributed Key Secret for Rewritable Blockchain. The present invention is primarily focused on a system that uses a blockchain, not the inner workings of the blockchain.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 9,855,785—Digitally Encoded Seal for Document Verification. The present invention uses some of the concepts of a digitally encoded seal, but does not make use of a seal, as verification of the changes to data is done by a state manager that uses a blockchain network. The present invention does not make use of scanning a document (digital/physical) as the verification is based on the state of any type of data and not the inner contents of the document.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 9,858,781—Architecture for Access Management. The present invention is not related access management but instead focuses on managing the state of data that systems (such as a security or analytics system) may use to authenticate changes to data over time. In several embodiments, the present invention sits on top of the architecture for access management and other related verification systems and acts as a base system for authenticating changes to data over time.
The present invention is distinguished from US20160261411A1—Method and System of Providing Authentication of User Access to A Computer Resource via a Mobile Device Using Multiple Separate Security Factors. The present invention is not related to access management but instead focuses on managing the state of data that systems (such as a security system) may use to authenticate changes to data over time. The present invention also makes use of a blockchain network to keep a ledger of all the hash values or state meta related to data at each state change.
The present invention is distinguished from US20160292396A1—System and Method for Authenticating Digital Content. The present invention focuses on state management of any type of data (not just user generated data). The present invention also permeates authentication at various points in the lifecycle of the data (e.g. when data is created, updated, removed, transferred). The present invention, in several embodiments, is also an improvement that supports verifying multiple points of interaction from devices and elements in the verification lifecycle (e.g. verifying, data, meta data, hash data, transport data, source data, target data etc.) which creates a completely secure and authenticated verification of data over time across all devices and elements that are involved in the verification lifecycle.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 6,076,077—Data Management System. The present invention may exist outside of the context of a database system (e.g. may be in virtual memory). The database system may not contain the edited content in the present invention. Encryption and decryption in the present invention may be done with parts of the data (e.g. packets of data) or may exist prior to or during data transport.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 6,973,556—Data Element Including Metadata that includes data management information for managing the data element. In the present invention, the metadata and hash values of the data element and metadata are stored in a distributed system (e.g. a blockchain network). In the present invention, recovery of data elements is enhanced with the use of a distributed system that stores a hash value of the data and/or metadata in MINE (e.g. hash values stored in blockchain network). In the present invention, the use of a redundant array of independent disks (RAID) is replaced with a distributed system and one or more system that manages the state of data.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 7,203,711—System and Method for Distributed Content Storage and Management. The present invention does not include indexed archived systems as the content (e.g. data or metadata) and is not indexed, but is instead a reference to data or metadata that is stored in a distributed system (e.g. a blockchain network). The notion of a “file” is not present in the present invention as the content could be of varying types (e.g. data, packets, bytes etc.) The process of “extracting metadata for file” is not present in the present invention, as the metadata is generated using a combination of identifiers (e.g. source id, date, time, target id, etc.).
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 7,454,443—Method, System and Program for Personal Data Management Using Content-Based Replication. The present invention may exist outside of the context of hard disk, mobile or stationary computer as the replication of hash values are stored over more than one node in a blockchain network. The use of a “fingerprint engine” is not present in the present invention as the use of a fingerprint is replaced with a hash value that is stored on a blockchain network.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 7,533,181—Apparatus, System and Methods for Data Access Management. The present invention only relates to the verification and authentication of data and not the storage of data or the management of data access.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 7,613,752—System and Methods for Using Metadata to Enhance Data Management Operations. The present invention is not related to the use of a “Metabase” that stores metadata in a central database, because in the present invention the metadata or hash values from metadata is distributed in a blockchain network of nodes.
The present invention is distinguished from U.S. Pat. No. 7,657,581—Metadata Management for Fixed Content Distributed Data Storage. The present invention is not related to the use of a “Backup copies” and instead represents copies of metadata across a blockchain network.
The present invention is distinguished from US20160300234A1—System and Method for Decentralized Title Recordation and Authentication. The present invention is not related to title recordation from one party to another, but instead focuses on managing the state of data over times by using a blockchain network.
The present invention is distinguished from US20160321654A1—Method and System for Storage and Retrieval of Blockchain Blocks Using Galois Fields. The present invention is primarily focused on a system that uses a blockchain, not the inner workings of the blockchain.
The present invention is distinguished from US20160321654A1—System and Method for Tracking Behavior of Networked Devices using Hybrid Public-Private Blockchain Ledgers. The present invention is primarily focused on the state of data management using a blockchain network and not specifically the tracking of assets between networked devices.
The present invention is distinguished from US20170091397A1—Device-Driven Non-Intermediated Blockchain System Over A Social Integrity Network. The present invention is primarily focused on the state of data management using a blockchain network and not specifically the processing of components over a communications network.
The present invention is distinguished from US20170111175A1—Systems and Method for Managing Digital Identities. The present invention uses the concepts of a distributed ledger system to validate or invalidate data over time. The present invention is agnostic to the type of data that may come from a source device and is primarily focused on authenticating the state of data and not the data itself (the state of data could contain a hash value representing the data, timestamp, source id etc.)
The present invention is distinguished from US20170126702A1—Verification Lineage Tracking and Transfer Control of Data Sets. The present invention is a major improvement that focuses on state of data management and not primarily the management of data (the state of data may be a digital signature “hash values” or a state meta data). The present invention is a major improvement that focuses on state management of any type of data (not just a copy of data that needs to be verified). The present invention is a major improvement that also permeates authentication at various points in the lifecycle of the data (e.g. when data is created, updated, removed, transferred). The present invention is a major improvement that supports verifying the transport of data and the data being transported (e.g. includes data, data meta, transport, transport meta). The present invention is a major improvement that supports verifying multiple points of interaction from devices and elements in the verification lifecycle (e.g. verifying, data, meta data, hash data, transport data, source data, target data etc. which creates a completely secure and authenticated verification across all devices and elements that are involved in the verification lifecycle). The present invention is a major improvement that supports verifying data, state meta and hash values from more than one source device (e.g. three applications send data to be verified, the data, meta and/or hash is sent to a blockchain network, a target device requests for verification of three applications and holds the verification for processing. Thus, a batch processing takes place on a target device that verifies three applications).
The present invention is distinguished from US20170132621A1—System and Method for Autonomous Device Transactions. The present invention is primarily focused on the state of data management using a blockchain network and not the inner workings of a blockchain network.
The present invention is distinguished from US20170163733A1—System and Method for Data Management Structure using Auditable Delta Records in a Distributed Environment. The present invention is not related to auditable delta records but instead focuses on managing the state of data over times by using a blockchain network.
The present invention is distinguished from US20170337534A1—Systems and Methods for Blockchain Virtualization and Scalability. The present invention is primarily focused on a system that uses a blockchain, not the inner workings of the blockchain.
The present invention is distinguished from US20170366353A1—Generation of Hash Values Within a Blockchain. The present invention is primarily focused on a system that uses a blockchain, not the inner workings of the blockchain.